2. Sea Limited (NYSE:SE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 63
Sea Limited (NYSE:SE), headquartered in Singapore, is a prominent tech conglomerate. Through its gaming division, Garena, the company has a significant presence in the gaming industry. It is one of the most valuable esports companies in the world. Garena is a major developer and publisher of online games. Its flagship title, Free Fire, is one of the most popular mobile battle royale games worldwide. The company has a global footprint across more than 130 markets and actively engages users through esports events, including the record-breaking Free Fire World Series 2021, which attracted 5.4 million concurrent viewers.
In addition to gaming, Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) operates Shopee, one of the largest e-commerce platforms in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, and SeaMoney, a growing digital financial services provider.
In its latest update for the second quarter of 2024 ended June 30, Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) highlighted the success of its gaming and digital entertainment division, Garena. The company reported over 20% year-on-year growth in bookings, primarily driven by the popular mobile game Free Fire. The game continues to thrive because of its large and highly engaged gamer base. The company reported that throughout the second quarter of 2024, Free Fire had over 100 million daily active users. In the Q2 2024 earnings call, management shared that according to Sensor Tower, Free Fire was the most downloaded mobile game globally in the second quarter.
Additionally, Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) is set to expand its gaming offerings with the upcoming launch of Need for Speed: Mobile in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, in collaboration with Tencent and Electronic Arts. This move will allow the company to bring a high-quality game with a classic IP to its dedicated gamer community and further enhance user engagement.
In Q2 2024, Sea Limited’s Digital Entertainment segment reported bookings of $537 million, reflecting a 21% increase year-over-year. The digital entertainment and gaming division saw a rise in quarterly active users to 648 million, up 19% year-over-year, and paying users reached 52.5 million, a growth of 21.7%.
Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) has a diversified revenue model that includes three main segments: gaming and digital entertainment, e-commerce, and digital financial services. Overall, the company achieved total revenues of $3.8 billion in the second quarter of 2024, marking a 23% increase from the previous year. The company generated a gross profit of $1.6 billion, up 9.2%. As of June 30, Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) had $9 billion in cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, and other treasury investments, representing a net increase of $364.7 million from March 31, 2024. This indicates strong financial health and growth potential.
The company’s diverse revenue streams and focus on emerging trends and customer engagement give it a strong competitive advantage, positioning Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) well for future growth. According to Insider Monkey’s database, 63 hedge funds held stakes in Sea Limited (NYSE:SE) in the second quarter of 2024. This brings SE to the 2nd spot on our list of the best gaming stocks to buy now.
